Home sales cooling off a bit

Lots of cross-currents at play in the new Dataquick report as the summer home-buying season draws to an end. August sales in Southern California fell 0.8 percent from the previous month (basically unchanged in L.A. County), and median prices remained unchanged at $385,000. Prices have stabilized because more properties have come onto the market and fewer buyers are doing all-cash deals that tend to inflate the numbers. However, this remains a wobbly market, certainly compared with the robust, pre-recession years. Higher interest rates can't be helping. Last month's median price was still 23.8 percent below the peak of $505,000 six years ago, though it's up from the low point of $249,000 in April 2009 - and up sharply from a year ago. Much of the sales action has been above the $500,000 mark, one more sign of Socal's bifurcated economy. From press release:

"There's something for everyone in today's housing data. Sellers have seen an amazing price jump from just a year ago, allowing many to finally sell at a profit. Home shoppers have more properties to choose as we begin to see a 'supply response' to higher values. Price pressures appear to be easing, though, amid higher mortgage rates, more supply and fewer cash and investor purchases. As we head into fall and winter, a slower time of year, we'll probably see year-over-year price gains continue to taper," said John Walsh, DataQuick president.

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